Toggle firing mechanism for firearms



vA il 11, 1961 GQH. TICHENOR IV TOGGLE FIRING MECHANISM FOR FIREARMSFiled April 8, 1958 29 FIG.1 34 a II 45 3 43 j/a FIG.4

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' ATTORNEY ,U itfi S e Pate t I r 2,978,825 TOGGLE FIRINGMECHANISM FORFIREARMS George H. Tichenor IV, 841 S. Oakland Ave., Pasadena, Calif.

Filed Apr. s, 1958, Ser- No. 727,164 12 Claims. or. 42-69) Thisapplication pertains to firearms such as guns or pistols, and isparticularly directed to a spring-loaded, trigger operated hammercontrol mechanism therefor, for actuating a firing pin for detonating acartridge.

One object of this invention is to provide a control mechanism of thecharacter described for a firearm hammer, which will operate with aminimum amount of trigger travel, and which shall provide a crisp,easily adjusted trigger pull.'

' Another object of this invention is to provide an improved gun hammercontrol mechanism of the type described, which may be precisely adjustedfortheamount of trigger pull necessary, which will retain saidadjustment in spite of time and temperature changes, and for which therewill be no noticeable trigger movement felt by the trigger finger.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide in hammer controlmechanism of the character described, improved spring releasable togglemeans to retain'said mechanism in uncocked position, said toggle meansbeing provided with a pair of magnetized portions arranged to help holdthe toggle means in the cockedposition of the hammer and to prevent halfcocking.

A further object of this .invention is to provide in toggle mechanism ofthe character described, means to changethe angularity of one of thetoggle links.

' Another object of this invention is to provide hammer 2,978,825Patented Apr. 11, 1961 Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the mechanism ofFig. 1 with the frame pivots in cross-section; and I Fig. 7 is anenlarged cross-sectional view taken on line 7-7 of Fig. 2 with thefiring pin advanced.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, Fig. 1 ilustrates 7 gun controlmechanism 10, constituting the invention, for

control mechanism of the character described, having which shall notrequire extremely accurate workmanship a and low tolerances forsuccessful operation, which shall be easy to manipulate; and yetpractical and eflicient and safe in use.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in parthereinafter pointed out.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combinations of elements and arrangements of parts, which will beexemplified in the construction hereinafter described, and of which thescope of invention will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a device embodying the inventionwith the toggle set in cocked position;

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device of Fig. 1 showing thetoggle in unco'cked position;

Fig. 3 is a plan view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is across-sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. l;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional View taken on line 5-5 of He small firearmssuch as rifles and pistols which operate to fire a cartridge by strikinga firing pin with a hammer 12. The hammer 12 is in the form of abellcrank lever and is formed with an upwardly extending head portion13. The head portion is formed with an upwardly projecting striking end14 and an upwardly extending thumb-catch 15. A pair of parallel, spacedleg portions 16 extend downwardly from the head portion 13 of thehammer. leg portions are provided with a pair of outwardly extendingpivot pin projections 17 formed coaxially on the outer surfaceof thelegs 16. The legs also have forwardly projecting lower end arms orportions 18 extending forwardly of pivots 17. The mechanism is mountedbetween parallel walls 20 of a gun housing. The pivot projections 17 ofthe hammer legs are received within a pair of bearing sockets 21 formedin the sides of therifie housing walls 20. Therefore the hammer maypivot about its axis.

Between the legs 16 of the hammer, at the upper rear section thereof, isa transverse pin 19. A spring engaging member 22 is mounted on pin 19between the legs of the hammer. The spring-engaging member 22 is formedwith a head portion having a flat circular underside 23 from which acentering pin 24 projects for engaging and centering the upper end of amainspring 25. The mainspring 25 is of coiled steel construction of anormally expanded type. When the hammer 12 is rotated rearwardly tococked position, as in Fig. l, the mainspring 25 will be compressed. Thelower end of the mainspring may be anchored in any suitable manner. Asecond transverse pin 19a extends between the legs 16 of the hammer atthe lower forwardly projecting portionslS thereof. Pivoted to pin 19a isa toggle member 26. The toggle member 26 hasa lever portion 27 throughthe middle of which the pin 19a passes. At one end of the portion 27 ofthe lever arm, and spaced from the pin 19a, is a counterweight 28. Thecounterweight 28 is swingable through an are about the pivot 19a andbetween the legs 16 of the hammer 12. A link 29 of the toggle member 26is formed opposite the pivot point 19a and is magnetized. The outer endof link 29 is pivoted by pin 30 between two flanges 31 forming a cavity31a'in the head 32 of a second toggle member 33. The toggle arm head 32is formed with an extended magnetized portion 34. At the juncture of themagnetized portion 34 and the head 32 is an outwardly projecting lug 35.Extending downwardly from the arm head 32 is an elongated shaft or arm36. Arm 36 is flexible. At the lower end of arm 36 is a second up,-

standing ridge or lug portion 37 similar to lug 35'and provided with athreaded opening 38. Opposite the lug 37 are a pair of rounded parallelflanges 39 formed with a space 39a therebetween. A transverse pivot'pin40 is supported in pin openings 40a in the frame walls 20 and traversesthe two flanges 39 and pivotally supports a trigger 41.

The trigger 41 is provided with a finger 42 extending above anintermediate pivot pin-engaging portion 41a of the trigger and facingthe toggle arm portion 36. Extending downwardly below the portion whichengages pin 40 is a finger pull portion 43. Extending further belowfinger portion 43 is an adjusting tab 44.

Surrounding the finger portion 43 of the trigger'is a finger guard 45.An adjusting screw 46 is screwed into threaded openings 46a, 46b inthe'finger guard 45, and is provided with an intermediate shaft portion47 of reduced diameter which extends through an openingin the The .adjusting itab 44 on the finger pull 43. The length of I travel of thefinger'will be limited by the. adjustment of screw 46, since theadjusting tab 44 will'abut the enlarged threaded portion of thescrew-46, uponthe finger being pulled. L

' other; The shaft 36 of the toggle arm which isflexible i When thefiring mechanism Will therefore be forced to bendaway from theadjustmentscrew 48. hereinafter be pointed out.

-A leaf spring member 4%: is mounted by means of The purpose of thisadjustment will 48 which will bend toggleshaft 36 -into alignment with*theforceonpinll'ay I The toggle arm 33'and link portion of thecounter.--

a bolt 50 to the inside of the finger guard 45.- .One end of the spring49a. extends upwardly into thegun housing and engages the head 48a: atthe lower end of adjustment screw 48. 7 1

Ill is in the position of :Fig; 2, it. is in its uncooked; position; 1:The mainspring is loose and extended." The forward end 18 of thehammerrests on the front of end 55 of firingpin chami ber 56 inwhich ishoused an inertialfiringpin57. The.

firing pin being of the inertial type,the gun is safe since;

when the trigger is not cocked a'blow on the hammer will notdischargethe cartridge. 1

Onlywhen the hammer iscocked, as in Fig-.1 will the i'firing'pin'project so as to be struck when themechanism 'ready forfiring, as illustrated lH'F g.1,lh6 following quired, the adjustingscrew 46 has been provided to regu is triggered. l i

In order to place the mechanism in cocked position 'stepsmustbetaken: VThe operator of the firearm grasps the trip hammer 12 i manuallybyengaging the thumb-catch 15 with his thumb.

' The hammer is then pulled backwards to compress spring togglemechanism. As the hammer is pulled rearwardly,

25, until the hammer is held in cocked position by the it will pivotclockwise on lugs 17.

Toggle lever 26 will rotate counterclockwise on pivot pin 19a. Togglearm 33 will swing in a clockwise direction on pivot pins 40. As the pin19a continues to move upwardly, away from pin 40, the point will bereached as shown in Fig. l, where the toggle 33 and the link 29 are inalignment so as to limit the further movement of pin 19a about the axisof lugs 17. In this position the magnet head 34 has been brought to bearupon the magnetized link portion 29 of the toggle member 26. The magnethead 34 strikes link 29 and hence also serves to prevent the toggle 33from moving past position of alignment. The two magnetized portions ofthe mechanism are of opposite polarity so as to attract each other. Theforce of the mainspring in this position is directed against the hammer12 so as to tend to rotate the hammer forwardly about the axis of lugs17. However, as the link 29 and toggle 33 are in alignment, forming astrut bent slightly past the straight line through the axis of pins 19aand 40, the force of the mainspring and the magnetized parts will tendto hold links in suchposition.

With the toggle 33, and link 29, in alignment, the toggle cannot bebroken should the gun he dropped, since the shock force acting oncounterweight 28 would tend to rotate link 29 to counter the same'shockforce acting on link 29 and toggle'33, as well as trigger 41, thusrendering the gun safe from accidental discharge if struck While in thecocked position.

The spring 49a will also hold the toggle links in alignment by pressingagainst the head of adjustment screw 48 'Which may be considered anextension of the toggle shaft 36. The pressure of pm 1911 through link29 against pin 30 and through toggle shaft36 to pin 40' must be in astraight, line, This may be adjusted by means of screw weight. become asone piece'when they. are in alignment.

However, when a slight angle is formed at'the point of pin 30. betweentoggle arm .33 and link 29, the resistance of the toggle thus formedwill belost. While the force requiredto throw the two members out ofalignment by endwise thrust is considered infinite, only a slight forceis required to break the alignment by rotating one of the toggleportions. This force is supplied by the trigger 41. I Trigger llpivotsgabout pin 40 as does thetoggle :arm 33.,

A short rearward pull on the finger piece 43 will move the projectionilzi againstthe shaft .36 of the toggle arm thus pushing the toggle armupwardly and forwardly. Only the holding power of the magnet 34 againstthe link 29 and the force of spring 49a must be overcome. When I theforce on the trigger is sufficientto counterbalance;

these forces, the toggle alignment is broken and the 'resist ance to thetriggerpull will become -nil.- The action of the mainspring 25 to rotatethe hammer head and there: ,forepin lflaabout the axis of lugs 17 willrelease the toggle, forcing the head 32 of .thetoggle arm'upwardly andforwardly andarcing the. striking surface 14 of 1 the hammerlz forwardlyagainst the firing pin chamber 56. While the force of: the magnet 34holding the. toggle in,

alignment must be quite strong to counteract the forces; l againstintheleverage applied by the long finger piece 43;against-the stem42 is greatenough .to provide alight and easy triggering. At thesametime thetrigger pull willalso be considered crisp" bccause'of the counterpull,of the magnet and the readiness-with which the magnet gives way whenonly slightly separated from the link.

219 of the toggle arm 26.

; Since onlythe slight movement of the trigger: is relate thepositioning of the trigger.

It I will be noted that in the. cocked position of the pivot 19a is atright angles to a line passing through pivots 19a, 30, 40, so that theforce of spring 25 is transmitted directly through the last line ofpivots.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which theseveral objects of this invention are achieved and which is well adaptedto meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the above invention,and as various changes might be made in the embodiments above set forth,it is to be understood that the matter set forth above or shown in theaccompanying drawings is 'merely illustrative and is not to beinterpreted in a limiting sense, the scope of the invention beingdelineated in the appended claims.

Having thus described certain embodiments of the invention what isclaimed is:

1. In combination, a gun housing, a hammer pivoted thereto, toggle meansto hold said hammer in cocked position, trigger means pivoted to thehousing to break the toggle, spring means to move said hammer touncocked position upon breaking the toggle, said toggle means includinga toggle arm pivoted to said hammer, a second toggle arm pivoted to thepivotal point of the trigger means, and means on the trigger means toengage the second toggle arm for moving the same upon pulling thetrigger, said second toggle arm having an extension shaped to contactthe first toggle arm when said toggle arms are in alignment, to holdsaid toggle arms in alignment, said first toggle arm having acounterweight extension;

2. The combination of claim 1, with means on said second toggle arm tobend said second toggle arm.

3. The combination of claim 2, said last means including a screw screwedto said second toggle arm, and 2. lug on said arm adapted to be abuttedby said screw.

4. The combination of claim 3, with spring means acthammer, a line fromthe axis ofpivot 17to the'axis of I cluding magnetized means to aid inpreventing breaking of the toggle, said toggle means including a togglearm pivoted to said hammer, a second toggle arm pivoted to thepivotalpoint of said trigger means, means on the trigger means to engage thesecond toggle arm for moving the same upon pulling the trigger to breakthe toggle, spring means to aid in retaining said toggle arms inalignment to retain said hammer in cocked position, one of said togglearms being provided with a counterweight.

6. The combination of claim 5, in combination with means to bend saidother toggle arm.

7. The combination comprising a gun housing, a hammer pivoted to saidgun housing, a trigger pivotally connected to said gun housing, togglemeans between said trigger and said hammer for holding the hammer incocked position and for releasing said hammer, means on said toggle toadjust the same, means on the trigger to control said toggle means, saidgunhousing being formed With a trigger guard, an adjustable screwscrewed to said trigger guard and having spaced shoulder portions, one

end of said trigger being formed with a tab engaging said adjustablescrew between said shoulder portions, whereby adjustment of the screwrelative to said guard will define the limits of movement of saidtrigger.

8. In combination, agun housing, a hammer pivoted .thereto, toggle meansto hold said hammer in cocked position, trigger means pivoted to thehousing to break the toggle, spring means to move said hammer touncooked position upon breaking the toggle, said toggle means includinga toggle arm pivoted to said hammer, a v a 9; The combination of claim8, with spring means acting on said second toggle arm to aid inretaining said toggle arms in alignment.

10. In combination with a gun housing containing a firing pin, amechanism received within said gun housing and mounted therein forstriking said firing pin, said mechanism comprising a hammer pivoted tosaid housing, means acting to rotate said hammer about its pivot, togglemeans connecting said hammer to said housing, said toggle meanscomprising a pair of links pivotally interconnected and provided withmeans to limit the movement of said links relative to each other in onedirection, said one of the links, of said toggle means connected at oneend to a pivot which is fixed relative to said housing, and the otherlink of said toggle means being pivotally connected to the hammer, atrigger pivotally mounted in said housing, and means on the trigger tomove the first of said toggle links thus breaking the alignment of saidtoggle links, said toggle links adapted to hold the hammer in cookedposition when aligned, and to release said hammer for rotation touncooked position when said links are misaligned, said other link ofsaid toggle means having a counterweight extending beyond its pivot tothe hammer. I

11. In combination, a gun housing, a hammer pivoted thereto, togglemeans to hold said hammer in cocked posi tion, trigger means pivoted tothe housing, spring means to move said hammer to uncooked position, uponbreaking said toggle, said toggle means comprising a .toggle arm pivotedto the hammer, a second toggle arm pivoted to the housing and to thefirst toggle arm, means on the trigger to engage said toggle means tobreak the toggle upon pulling the trigger, and said first toggle armhaving a counterweight extending beyond its pivot to the hammer.

12. The combination of claim 11, one of said toggle arms having means toengage the other toggle arm to retain said toggle arms in alignment.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 22,881Lowe Feb. 8, 1359 24,768 Tromly July 12, 1859 595,046 Critchett Dec. 7,1897 2,249,231 Smith .2 July 15, 1941 2,375,721 Woodhull May 8, 19452,424,247 McCaslin July 22, 1947 2,874,503 Niesp Feb. 24, 1959

